Nepal, like other developing countries, has been involved in the REDD+ process since the beginning of the discussion on this global policy mechanism (i.e., COP 13, 2007) and is about to complete its readiness phase. This publication documents the experiences of a wide range of experts working on REDD+ in Nepal. The objective is to collect experiences on a wide range of topics related to REDD+ for Nepal and produce state of the art knowledge of the readiness phase, considering that Nepal is the most advanced country in REDD+ in South Asia.
Chapter 12: Gender and REDD+ in Nepal
Authors: Jeannette Gurung and Dibya Gurung
In the two decades since gender issues were first discussed within Nepal’s forest sector, substantial progress has been made in forming policies and initiating activities for including women. However, GESI has not been effective in programming, budgeting, and monitoring and evaluation, despite policy mandates provided in the GESI strategy and vision, despite concerted efforts by various agencies.
Key Findings and Gaps in Gender Integration in REDD+ and Forestry
- There is a high level of engagement of rural women in labour-intensive forest-related activities, but their engagement in decision-making processes is low
- The existence of several layers of powerful and exclusive leadership mechanisms at the district and local level poses a threat to the effective implementation of REDD+.
- The lack of GESI implementation guidelines, systematic structures, resources, skills, and expertise at the central, district and community level has made the implementation of the GESI Strategy within forest-related programmes challenging.
Recommendations
- Invest in interventions that reduce women’s workload and reduce fuelwood consumption
- Establish and support platforms for women’s leadership to allow both men and women to learn about gender and the importance of women’s engagement in the forest and development-related decision-making and women’s access to financial and technical resources to improve family livelihoods.
- Develop micro-enterprises and cooperatives of marginalized women to provide new opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship that are aligned with the Emissions Reduction Programme.
- Strengthen the knowledge and skills of government staff at the central and district level on GESI, for analysis and integration both in project cycles and within their organizations.
- Encourage and strengthen the organizational capacities of forest-related federations, cooperatives, and user groups so that they can become stronger, more inclusive organizations with a commitment to gender equality and social inclusion.
- Measure and monitor the results – not just outputs – of activities using a set of indicators or a standard for women’s empowerment /gender equality.
Editors: S. Dhungana, M. Poudel and T.S. Bhandari
Source: ICIMOD
